Charles T. Webber Letters to Wilbur H. Siebert   Save
Wilbur H. Siebert Collection
Description: Artist Charles T. Webber (1825-1911) sent these two letters in response to inquires made by Wilbur H. Siebert, a history professor at the Ohio State University. Siebert (1866-1961) requested a photograph of Webber's painting The Underground Railroad for his book The Underground Railroad from Slavery to Freedom (1898). In the first letter, dated November 10, 1892, is two pages in length and measures 4.8 by 7.8 inches (12.19 by 19.81 cm). Webber informs Siebert that he expects to finish the painting within three months, but cannot send a photograph until it is completed. He also refers to Siebert's "circular," a list of questions sent to those who had participated in efforts to assist fugitive slaves. The second, one-page letter from September 20, 1894 measures 5.5 by 8.3 (13.97 by 21.08 cm). In it, Webber apologizes for the delay in providing a photograph, but indicates that he will soon have the painting in his home, where he could take a good photograph of it. Webber was a native of New York state. He lived in Cincinnati from 1860 until his death in 1911. Webber created hundreds of works, including portraits, landscapes, genre subjects, and historical scenes. He belonged to many Cincinnati arts organizations and was considered the "dean" of the Cincinnati art community in the nineteenth century. Siebert was a professor of history at the Ohio State University from 1902 until 1935. Between 1891 and 1935, he amassed a wealth of material relating to the Underground Railroad. In the 1940s, he donated the materials to the Ohio Historical Society, together with records pertaining to his two other research interests, American Loyalists and East Florida. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1290_1132107_003
Subjects: Arts and Entertainment; Civil Liberties; African American Ohioans; Underground Railroad; Artists
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio); Columbus (Ohio); Franklin County (Ohio)